Greetings from Bougainvillea City,

A while back I was asked by the parish priest of Our Lady of Lourdes Church to address the needs of women in the parish as he and others observed that some were living in abusive situations and were too steeped in traditional Indian culture to make effective changes. While I agreed to the call to mission among this group of mostly homemakers, I felt that I could not do much on my own, so we formed the Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s League.

On Sunday, 11 March 2018, 130 women gathered at the church to celebrate International Women’s Day, the second time we were doing so. We kept to last year’s theme, “Be Bold For Change” as we felt that the women needed time to adapt to changes. The event was well publicized in the parish with the permission and full support of the parish priest. We were pleased that the attendance jumped from 95 last year.

The talk on domestic violence by lawyer, Sheanna Santa, which focused on women’s rights and the available venues to seek help and redress, captivated the women’s attention, and set off a barrage of questions. This flowed well into the next talk and group sharing on the topic, “Be Bold For Change”. The gathering also gave the women a chance to let their hair down and have some fun, as can be seen in the following photos.

Group Discussion on “Be Bold For Change”

Time to let our hair down

Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s League

I am invited to sit on the panel for a celebration organised by another women’s group, Shine on 17 March 2018 at Syeun Hotel, where about 800 women from across the country are expected to attend.

Asian women are on the move, and Good Shepherd mission is powering ahead!

By Sr Veronica Saminathan

Ipoh, West Malaysia

12 March 2018